


Past Meets Future

by Settiai



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening
Genre: Fade to Black, Grey Warden Joining, M/M, One Shot, The Black Emporium Exchange, Treat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:01:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26345287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Settiai/pseuds/Settiai
Summary: Alim couldn’t keep his eyes off Anders.
Relationships: Anders/Male Surana (Dragon Age)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 16
Collections: Black Emporium 2020





	Past Meets Future

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Luffymarra](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Luffymarra/gifts).



Alim couldn't keep his eyes off Anders.

If he was honest with himself, he wasn't entirely certain why. Back in the Circle they'd been friends, and from time to time they'd slept together. It hadn't been anything serious, though, not really. How could it be? That wasn't something that mages were allowed to have.

Maybe it was just the relief of a familiar face.

Over the course of a little over a year, absolutely everything in his life had been turned on its end. Kinloch had been the only home he had known for most of his life and, just like that, it was nothing but a memory. Daylen was gone, everything that made him who he was lost to the Rite of Tranquility long before the demons had killed his body. Who knew where Jowan had gone since the last time Alim saw him back in Redcliffe, or even if he was still alive? Ferelden hadn't exactly been the safest place recently. And Cullen... well, the less Alim thought about Cullen, the better.

Yes, that could be it. Maybe it was just that Anders reminded him of simpler times, when he'd been nothing more than a boy running around the Circle rather than a man who held the fate of an entire kingdom in his hands.

"Alim?"

Alim startled, his attention drawn back towards the bed he'd been sitting beside for the past few hours. He'd been relieved when Anders had survived the Joining, even if he'd stayed unconscious longer than Alim had been expecting. The aftermath of his own Joining was hazy in his mind, but he didn't think he'd been out for more than half an hour if that. Seneschal Varel hadn't seemed surprised, though, so Alim had forced himself not to be either.

It said a lot about his experiences as a Grey Warden that a man who'd never been through the Joining probably knew more about what was or wasn't normal than Alim.

Anders blinked up at him from the bed. "I guess that this means I didn't die?" he asked slowly. He started to push himself up into a sitting position before groaning and dropping back down onto the bed. "No, I lied. I'm pretty sure I'm dead."

Alim snorted at that. "Give it time," he said. "The hangover will fade, but you'll have terrifying nightmares to replace it."

"Lovely," Anders muttered. He took a deep breath and tried pushing himself up again, grimacing as he did but managing to sit up. "This just keeps getting better and better."

Alim shrugged. "I mean, you could be dead, so..."

Anders grimaced. "Point taken."

The two of them settled into silence for a long moment. It might been awkward if it had been anyone else, but as it was it felt right. They both knew each other well enough to know when talking was needed and when it wasn't, and Alim knew that Anders probably needed at least a little while to get used to the fact that his entire world had shifted.

"Did you miss me?"

... or not.

Alim rolled his eyes at the familiar shiteating grin that Anders was shooting him. "Like a hilt to the head," he said. "Or maybe a smite."

If anything, Ander's grin grew even wider. "You've always said the nicest things."

Despite his best attempts to stop it, Alim could feel his mouth twisting into a smile. "I'm glad you made it, Anders," he said, and if his tone was a bit more serious than it probably should have been... well, it had been a very long year. "It will be nice to have a familiar face around here."

"Just a face?" Anders asked, wagging his eyebrows. "There's nothing else you'd like to refamiliarize yourself with?"

Alim threw his head back and laughed. He couldn't help it. It had felt as if he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders ever since he'd followed Duncan out of Kinloch all those months ago, and all it had taken was a handful of bad innuendoes from Anders to have him feeling lighter than he had in ages.

"Oh, I can think of a few things," Alim said, shooting Anders a quicksilver grin. Then, before his mind had a chance to chime in and remind him of the multitudes of things that he really needed to get done, he leaned down and kissed him.

Anders all but melted under Alim's mouth and, oh yes, he remembered just why he and Anders had fit together so well now. They'd been like two sides of the same coin, equal yet opposite.

Alim didn't have too long. Whether he liked it or not, he was the Warden Commander, and there were other people depending on him. His time wasn't his own anymore, not really.

But he had a little time. For now.

It took some effort on Alim's part, but he managed to pull himself away after a long moment. Anders's eyes were wide, his breathing already heavy after just a few kisses.

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to make sure you still remember how to follow orders," Alim said, reaching out to gently tuck a loose strand of hair out of Anders's face and behind his ear. "It would be the responsible thing to do, as your commander."

Anders swallowed hard before nodding. "Following orders still isn't my strong suit," he said roughly. "I may need some training if you're going to expect that from me. Regular training."

Alim smiled, his hand sliding down Anders's face and slipping under his chin. He tilted his face upwards just slightly so that they were meeting each other's gaze.

"Well then," he said. "I guess that I'll have to get started on that."

Then he leaned forward to kiss him again, a bit more roughly than before. Beneath him, Anders let out a moan that went straight through him.

Alim closed his eyes and pressed the kiss a little harder.

He hadn't realized how much he'd missed Anders until just then, but now that he had... well, it wouldn't hurt if the both of them took some time to remind each other of simpler times.

Besides, Anders was right. Following orders had never been one of his talents. Alim suspected that he'd need all of the practice he could get.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on Twitter. (https://twitter.com/settiai)


End file.
